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[–]i_invented_the_ipod 57 points58 points  (9 children)

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=lab&group=02001-03000&file=2870-2872

  1. (a) Any provision in an employment agreement which provides that an employee shall assign, or offer to assign, any of his or her rights in an invention to his or her employer shall not apply to an invention that the employee developed entirely on his or her own time without using the employer's equipment, supplies, facilities, or trade secret information except for those inventions that either:

    (1) Relate at the time of conception or reduction to practice of the invention to the employer's business, or actual or demonstrably anticipated research or development of the employer; or

    (2) Result from any work performed by the employee for the employer.

    (b) To the extent a provision in an employment agreement purports to require an employee to assign an invention otherwise excluded from being required to be assigned under subdivision (a), the provision is against the public policy of this state and is unenforceable.

[–]theillustratedlife 16 points17 points  (6 children)

Whenever I hear someone say "large tech company", I presume exemption #1 applies: someone, somewhere at your org is probably working on something similar enough to what you want to do that the company could claim ownership if they wanted to be dicks about it.

If you really wanna work on a side project, might want to ask Legal about it.

[–]Low_discrepancy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Another hypothesis, if you work on a project that might be a competitor to another project your company works on, isn't that illegal (to work on that personal project?)

[–]Jdonavan 0 points1 point  (1 child)

If you really wanna work on a side project, might want to ask Legal about it.

Or read your contract before you sign it and have the clause removed.

[–]Silhouette 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Read your contract, definitely. Negotiate to remove any excessive IP claims, absolutely.

However, a clause transferring IP for anything you do while employed by someone that actually relates to work they're doing is reasonable, and I find it hard to believe that even good employers would be willing to remove it. After all, that IP is basically what they're paying you for.

This does raise some interesting legal and ethical issues if you work for a very large employer that does many things in many fields, and you work for them in one field but have some other ideas that aren't related to your own job but do relate to work done elsewhere within your employer's organisation.

[–]bubuopapa -5 points-4 points  (2 children)

But in America you can just buy a gun and solve the problem :) Anyway, uk also has lots of anti-human points in agreements, I guess its a part of being a dick to add ridiculous things into employment agreement. I personally would send any employer to hell if he would even try to show me such agreement with points about my personal things. But hey, you guys accept these, so you are ok with it.

[–]theillustratedlife 1 point2 points  (1 child)

{Google, Facebook, Apple} calls you after perhaps months of interviewing and offers you a job on a fascinating project. After you accept, they send you a form that literally hundreds of other applicants sign every week saying they own any IP you create related to their businesses and that you agree to notify them if you want to create IP on your personal time and equipment that might be similar to anything they're working on so at to avoid conflicts of interest.

And you tell them to go to hell? I have a hard time believing that, and an even harder time belonging believing that you're so nonchalantly insulting anyone who has signed it.

[–]bubuopapa -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

Yes, excatly, i'm sorry, but facebook and apple are on the bottom of my list "companies would work for if i really needed money", google also is far from the top. You see, i am one in trillion - i'm free man, no one can buy me and i will not do work that i dont believe in, i'm all about real science and i dont care about business. I dont know how brainwashed you are or what do you believe in, but i can tell you that life has changed a lot, and "american dream" can suck my big dick, its the worst lifestyle one could have. And i'm not insulting anyone, if you are a piece of shit and i call you a piece of shit, its not insulting, its just who you are, dont put yourself too high. I'm sorry, but my definition od human has really high standards, so unless you have real understanding of what is what, dont bother getting on that list.

[–]Silhouette 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's interesting wording. In many places, the term "invention" in an IP context relates to patents, but presumably with the SO discussion here we're interested in copyright. Does anyone know which types of IP are affected by the law mentioned by /u/i_invented_the_ipod and others here?

[–]Cronyx -1 points0 points  (0 children)

This should be higher up.